We are here

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Well we made it. We are now in Alaska and have been here for about a week. The last time I left you we were in Vancouver B.C after just leaving the Sunshine Coast and heading up to Clearwater to meet up with Jared's Kayaking buddies for a B.C. whitewater tour. And, tour it was, I don't think I saw so much white water in all my life. One of the guys had a raft and so I was able to ride down some pretty amazing rivers while Stan did all the work. 😊 The water seems much bigger when you are right down in it. (did I mention I fell out of the raft?) Thank god for good kayakers to rescue me! 😊 After we left the Clearwater, we headed to Quesnel Forks to kayak the Quesnel and Cariboo rivers. From there we went to to Chilcotin river to kayak the white mile. The white mile is well known in the kayaking community for the deaths of eight guys on a kayaking trip in the 70's. It is called the white mile because of the long stretch of white water the lasts for a full mile. Needless to say I sat out that run. It sounded pretty burley! During our white water tour of B.C. we were able to see a lot of cool small towns and able to hang out with some really cool locals. The Canadians were very welcoming and friendly. We had great time in the small town of Likley. It was an old gold rush goast town the the people of Likley were very proud of there history and happy to tell you all about the town. The last night we were there a group of locals from the bar came down to our camp site and spent the night telling stories around the camp fire. They were quite the the wild bunch and partied into the wee hours of the morning but were a lot of fun. The locals and the kayakers way out partied me and I went to bed at about 3am and they were still going. They were even able to out last the night shifter. 😊 What can I say. I guess I must be getting old. 😊 Anyway after doing the chilcotin, Jared and I split up from his buddies and headed to Prince Rupert. We spent some time in Smithers before heading on to catch the ferry in Prince Rupert. We were able to stay in Prince Rupert for a few days and had a great time there. The cow bay area down by the water is filled with great places to eat and great pubs that we were able to explore. But by far Jared's favorite part, ( surprise, surprise,) was the tidal wave that he was able to kayak. It is very simular to the wave on sunshine coast and is formed the same way. The interesting thing was that he ran into some guys that were connected to our family and friends in Petersburg. It was quit amazing. While Jared was surfing the wave in Price Rupert, he ran across three guys in small Zodiak boats trying to get across the tidal rapids that Jared was surfing in his kayak. They were having trouble going against the tide in there small boats and so Jared started talking to them giving them tips on how to best get around the rapids. They started up a conversation about who they were and where they were going and that they too were heading to Alaska. With further conversation they discoverd that they too were going to Petersburg, that they too were going to visit the Litsheim's in Petersburg, and not only that but they new our father. They had grown up in Petersburg and new or family well. They now live in the Shelton area and own a construction company that Jared had worked for as union carpenter. They were heading up to Petersburg to visit friends via there little boats. They took the boats all the way up through the inside passageway and ran into Jared who was able to help them just at the right time. It truly is a small world sometimes.
So from Prince Rupert we got on the ferry and spent a week in Petersburg. The visit was nice and all the people of Petersburg who new our family were so welcoming. They opened there home to us, took us fishing in their boats, and fed us like kings. I don't remember the last time I had so much good fresh seafood. It was so relaxing and nice. Everyone was wonderful.
One of the highlights of our time in Petersburg, was a hike that Jared and I made to Petersburg lake cabin. It was a ten and a half mile hike one way up to a beautiful lake with amazing mountain views. Sadie had been in the car quit a lot on the ferry and such and was going quit stir crazy so the hike was great for her. You would never know that she had done that long of a hike when we were done. She didn't appear tired at all. She loved it. Jared and I on the other hand were draging by the end of it. It was really fun and rewarding but quit tiring. It was a record for me I had never done a hike that long before. Ten miles is a long ways for me. But boy was it ever worth it. The cabin was great and the lake beautiful. We saw lots of wild life on the trail including black bears and deer. Sadie also discoverd a few porky pines and ended up with quills in her nose. She didn't like that to much but didn't seem to learn her lesson since she went back for more on the next porky pine she met on the trail. We had to keep an eye on her.
So now we have left Petersburg and are heading north. We just got off the ferry this morning in Skagway and are planing to spending a day or two here. We will see what happens.
Anyway I should go.
Until next time,
Summer

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